Manchester United players were surprised by the absence of Cristiano Ronaldo from pre-season training, but the mood in the camp remains positive.
The Portugal international is yet to link up with Erik ten Hag and his squad on their pre-season tour, and it is not yet clear when we will see him in a United shirt again.
According to Fabrizio Romano in his exclusive CaughtOffside column on Substack, the whole Man Utd squad is in the dark over the situation, and they were left surprised by the player’s decision.
Still, Romano insists the mood inside the united camp is good, with the players enjoying life under new manager Ten Hag, who took over after leaving Ajax at the end of last season.
Explaining the current mood at United, Romano said: “There is a great feeling about Erik ten Hag’s methods inside the Manchester United dressing room so far.
“The players are satisfied and feel a clear change from the last few years as the new manager implements his philosophy during pre-season training.”
He added: “The absence of Cristiano Ronaldo is clearly a surprise for everyone, but the players themselves are waiting to understand the final decision of the Portuguese: they really don’t know what’s going to happen.”
Ronaldo remains a world class finisher, scoring 24 goals for United last season, but questions remain over his suitability to play in Ten Hag’s system at the age of 37.
I am hopeful that Cristiano joins this youthful side and help rebuild this once great fort, ETH seems to be the real deal for UTD and am positive that in the next two seasons we will be where we want to be. God bless Man UTD